The Return
by MeadGohac
Summary: What would happen if when Naruto returns from trying to retrieve Sasuke, he falls into a coma? Will people hate him for failing? And will people realize hidden feelings? Takes place just after Sasuke becomes a traitor. Pairing unknown.
1. The Return

"Talking"

"YELLING"

_thoughts_

**Demon/Summon Speaking**

_**Demon/Summon Thinking**_

_The Return_

Naruto returned to the village of Konohagakure with a look of defeat set upon his face. He was bloody and bruised, and showed obvious signs of a huge fight taking place just moments before. His usual grin that would almost light up the sky was replaced with a frown, as he knew how everyone was going to react as he returned to the village.

The main gate to the village opened as Naruto came closer to the village. With shoulders slumped, and tears in his eyes, he painfully stumbled his way into the village. He looked up for a brief second and looked around. He noticed a crowd of villagers and shinobi alike all rushing to the gates to greet him. One such person rushing to greet him was a pink haired kunoichi by the name of Haruno Sakura, Naruto's teammate from while his other teammate was still in the village.

She was the first person to say anything to Naruto upon his entry to the village. "Where's Sasuke-kun? He's coming right behind you isn't he?" she said, desperation clearly evident in the tone of her voice. Naruto was so ashamed he couldn't even raise his head, or look her in the eye. He couldn't even muster up the courage to speak, so he shook his head no. At this action, a look of confusion spread across her face."If Sasuke-kun isn't with you and he's not coming right behind you, then where is he Naruto?"

"He's... He's..." Naruto began to say but he couldn't finish the sentence, it was too painful for him to tell her the truth. Naruto then fell to his knees and told Sakura "I'm sorry." before finally collapsing. Tears then began to form in Sakura's eyes understanding what the blond was trying to apologize for. Her Sasuke-kun wasn't returning to Konoha. She quickly turned and ran away from the scene, and the crowd of villagers parted for her as she ran off.

_Oh, Naruto-kun_ came the thoughts from one of the kunoichi in the crowd, as she ran out to his lifeless body, and carried him to the hospital.

"Hokage-sama! Naruto Uzumaki has returned to the village!" The ANBU that had noticed the scene reported to the Godaime Hokage of the village hidden in the leaves, also known as Konohagakure. The male ANBU's face may have been hidden, but his posture gave away two things to the Hokage: One, the ANBU was ecstatic for the return of the hyperactive ninja, and two, there was a sad situation regarding said ninja. The Hokage easily picked up on both of these facts.

"That is great news, but how come you are reporting this to me, and not him?" She asked the ANBU standing in front of her. The look on her face was one which practically screamed "if you don't tell me a favorable answer, be ready for some pain." Upon seeing the look on the Hokage's face, he audibly gulped, and answered "He was just admitted to the hospital. He has numerous wounds and passed out on the streets while was was talking with your apprentice."

At this news the Hokage jumped up out of her seat. Forgetting she was a ninja for a moment, Tsunade then ran as fast as she could towards the hospital to check on her favorite blond haired ball of energy. As soon as the Hokage entered the hospital the receptionist instantly knew who she was looking for, and directed her to the room that Naruto was currently in. Tsunade made it to the room in record time and opened the door and entered. She didn't have to look around long before she was looking at the blond who was unconscious in the bed. _If it was anyone else besides Naruto, They'd probably have been dead before they even made it to the village gates._

Within moments of Tsunade reaching the side of Naruto, the door opened again, and four med-nin joined her in the room, and they got to work trying to repair as much of the damage to the young blond boy's body as possible. _Why hasn't the Kyuubi healed him? His abnormally fast rate of healing should have healed quite a bit of his wounds. What happened out there?_ Was the last thought that crossed the large chested Hokage's mind as she exited the room, after several hours of work to heal the boy.

The moment she closed the door, she noticed someone standing outside the door, waiting for news on his state. "Hokage-sama, How is he? Is he going to be alright?" asked the person waiting there. "He's stable for the time being, however..." the Hokage said, as she began to look towards the ground " For how long, I'm not sure. I've never seen Naruto this beat up in all the time I've known him." She then turned and walked down the hall, on her way back to the office to face one of her most dreaded enemies. Paperwork.

The worried person entered the room, and sat down by Naruto's bedside, hoping for the best. _Please Naruto-kun, The Hokage needs you to recover. The Village needs you... I need you. Please come back to me._ They thought, as they held Naruto's hand. Hours passed, and the individual was still at his bedside. Nurses came in to check on Naruto, and tried to get them to leave, but they were adamant about staying by his side, and so they stayed there over night, still clutching Naruto's hand.

When Tsunade came into the room the next morning to check on him, she noticed the person still clutching his hand. The person was slouched forward, with their head resting on the bed. _It looks like I'm not the only person that's genuinely worried for him._ A small smile crossed the Hokage's lips, as she woke them up. "I need you to leave the room temporarily. I should only be a few minutes, but I need to do a check up on him and unfortunately I can't have anyone in the room for it. You're more than welcome to come in once I'm done." The individual nodded, and walked out of the room while the Hokage did her examination.

Tsunade walked out of the room, and to no surprise at all, she saw the person waiting anxiously outside of the room. "I'll be honest, I'm glad that you're showing interest, and staying by his side through this. Not many people in this god-forsaken village would do such a thing for him." She admitted with a smile on her face. She placed a hand on their shoulder, and said "That being said, I'll be honest with you. It's not looking good. Physically, he's fit as he was before he left. There's not a thing wrong with him. He's fully healed. However, none of us are sure when he'll wake up." A look of complete sadness was evident on both of their faces. "I'll be bringing Inoichi in tomorrow to see if he can find out what happened to cause this, or even find a way to wake him up... But we don't know how it'll turn out at this time."

-AN-

So, this is my first ever fan fiction. This came to me after listening to a song called Witch Hunt by Children Of Eve. If you haven't heard of them, I don't find that unlikely. They are a band that is local to where I live. They disbanded over a year ago.

If you're wondering why I have referred to Naruto's visitor without any details of who it is, it is because I haven't decided who it should be, or who to pair him up with. As this is my first fanfic, I'm open for any and all criticism, flames, reviews, tips, and ideas for what you think may or should happen in the story. As I haven't decided on a pairing for this story as of yet, If you leave a review and suggest a character I will certainly try and add them into the story, or even make them the character that's by his side. On another note, I do not have a beta reader, so this is all thought up, and edited by myself. If you would like to beta read for me, feel free to send me a message.

I hope you've all enjoyed the story so far, and remember reviews of all types are always welcome.


	2. Confrontation

_Confrontation_

The next day came which meant Tsunade was going to check on her favorite blond shinobi. She knew she shouldn't pick favorites when it comes to her subordinates, but she couldn't help it. This particular shinobi was the reason she was Hokage in the first place. She opened the door, and to no surprise, the individual that was watching over him the last couple days, was still there at his bedside.

"Hinata, I need you to leave again, I'm gonna do another examination of him." Tsunade said to the girl still resting by Naruto's side. Hinata slowly got up nodded her head and bowed, and then silently left the room. _This isn't good for her. I understand her staying by his side, but it doesn't look like she's eaten since he was admitted. _Tsunade thought to herself as she checked on Naruto.

Five minutes later, the Hokage left the office and looked to Hinata who was standing on the other side of the hallway. "Hinata, have you eaten at all since Naruto came in?" She questioned, knowing the answer before it was asked. "N-no, Hokage-sama." She stuttered out, looking towards the ground "I didn't want to leave to get food, I wanted to be by his side so the first thing he saw when he woke up was me." She said, complete sadness showing on her face, as she looked the Hokage in the eyes.

"That's very understandable, and I'd do the same thing in your position. However as a med-nin and Hokage, I can't allow this any further. So I'll give you two options. Either you go out and get something to eat, or even go home and check in with Hiashi and the rest of your family." She started, knowing that Hinata would more than likely not do that. "Or, I'll order some delivery for you, and you can stay by his side." At this, Hinata just nodded once, and walked back into the room, and sat down beside her crush's side.

Fifteen minutes later, there was a soft knock on Naruto's door. "C-come in." Hinata said quietly, as to not disturb Naruto. The door opened and Ayame Ichiraku walked inside, carrying a bag of food as the Hokage had requested of her. "Hello Hinata-sama, How's he doing?" She then questioned, setting the bag of food down beside Hinata, and looking at Naruto.

"He's fully healed, but he's in a coma." She said solemnly. "Inoichi should be in later today to mind walk him and see what happened, or even try to bring him out of it." Hinata then picked up the bag, and looked at the contents inside. Inside the bag was two bowls of miso ramen, and a box of cinnamon buns. "Thank you for bringing me this Ayame."

"It's the least I could do, Hinata-sama. When he's cleared from the hospital, make sure he comes to visit us, okay?" Ayame asked of Hinata before turning around from Naruto and Hinata, leaving the room. _I'm sure that Naruto-kun will find his way there on his own, Ayame._ Hinata thought, as she began to eat the food that was just brought to her.

Later that day the man known as Hiashi Hyuuga, leader of the Hyuuga clan and Hinata's father, walked into the Hokage's office. "Excuse me, Hokage-sama." The clan head stated to get the Hokage's attention. Tsunade abruptly stopped what she was doing, and paid attention to the man who had entered her office. "Good afternoon, Hyuuga-san, What can I do for you today?" She then asked, having a clear idea of why the man was in her office.

"I am wondering if you know the whereabouts of my daughter." Hiashi said to the large chested blond Hokage. "I do know where she is, I've been checking on her the last couple days. I also know that she won't leave where she is without being forcefully removed." Tsunade said to the man knowing that once he finds out exactly where she is, he'll need to use as much force as possible to get her to leave.

"Where is she, Hokage-sama?" Hiashi asked of the Hokage. "Me and my clan members have looked for her, but even with our Byakugan, we have been unable to locate her." The Hokage looked at the man sternly, and told him where Hinata was. "She's currently at the hospital. She hasn't left the room of Naruto Uzumaki since he was brought in by her."

Although Hiashi had nothing against the blond jinchurikki, he didn't like the fact that his daughter was with him. To him because Naruto is a nameless orphan, he is not worthy of the attentions of the Hyuuga. Especially one of the main branch, and the eldest daughter who is to be the next clan head. "Excuse me, Hokage-sama." Hiashi said as he bowed, and then exited the office. His next destination, talking some sense into his daughter.

As Tsunade watched the Hyuuga clan head leave the office, she shook her head, preparing for the aftermath of what was about to happen. She slowly got up out of her seat, and went to the hospital herself. She had a feeling that if she wasn't there to mediate the situation, than it could get to be rather bad and not just for those three. A loud shouting match could disrupt several patients in the building, and a fight could damage the building itself.

Hinata was sitting at Naruto's side peacefully, holding his hand, and still wishing he'd come out of his coma soon._ Please Naruto-kun, Come back, I need to see your bright smile again._ She thought, just as the door burst open as her father came rushing into the room, a look of contempt clearly evident on his face.

"Hinata, you are to come home with me right now. You shall not tarnish the name of our clan any further by staying here with him." Hiashi stated, anger flowing through every word spoken by him. "No. I will not go. I am staying by his side through this." Hinata said to her father, finality in her voice as she stuck up for herself for once. "I'm tired of being the girl that everyone looks down on, the girl that everyone thinks is too shy and too weak to do anything by herself." She started, as she let go of the boys hand, and stood up, confidence in her posture, and a fire burning in her eyes as she stared her father down. "I don't care what you think, I don't care what the village thinks. And by Kami-sama I don't care what the whole world thinks. This boy in a coma is the source of the strength I have. This boy has been my inspiration throughout my whole ninja career thus far. I will not allow you to tell me I can't be by Naruto's side. I need to do at least this one thing for him, after all he has done for me."

It shocked Hiashi to see his meek daughter show so much fight and determination. For the briefest of moments, a look of disbelief crossed his face, before returning to it's usually stoic form. "I will have to forcefully remove you from this room won't I?" He then asked, already knowing the answer.' Hinata just gave him a nod, proving himself to be right. "Fine. You may stay. But at least be smart about it. Make sure you take care of yourself while you are looking after him. As much as this could tarnish our reputation as a clan, I'm glad that you are finally finding courage. Once you come home, we will need to increase your training to make up for time lost." Hiashi said as he then turned around and walked out of the room.

As he exited the room, he noticed Tsunade standing just outside the room. "I assume you thought that we wouldn't have came to a reasonable agreement, Hokage-sama?" Tsunade just nodded, as Hiashi then continued to walk down the hall and back to his clan's district. _I'm glad that it didn't escalate further. I am glad that no fights or yelling broke out._ Tsunade thought as she stood there for a few more moments, before turning and going back to her office.

Upon returning, she called for her ANBU to retrieve Inoichi Yamanaka. The time had come for him to do a mind walk of Naruto. Within minutes Inoichi had arrived in the office. "You called for me, Hokage-sama?" Inoichi asked, as he stood there waiting for orders. "Yes I did, Inoichi. As you know Naruto Uzumaki has returned to the village. He is currently in the hospital in a coma. I need you to do a mind walk to find out what caused it, or even possibly bring him out of the coma. As you know, Naruto is a valuable asset to the village, and we need him out of the coma as soon as possible." The Hokage said with finality in her voice.

"Of course, Hokage-sama, I shall go immediately." Inoichi said, as he turned to leave the office. "One more thing Inoichi. Please allow Hinata Hyuuga to remain in the room as you preform the mind walk. She's been there with him since he was admitted, and refuses to leave his side." Inoichi nodded at Tsunade's request, continuing on his way to the hospital.

_**~-Author's Note-~**_

So, this is the second chapter of the story. I know that some of the characters are out of character, however there is good reason for it. Don't you think that if Naruto was in a coma, that she would do everything she could to stay by his side? Don't you think that if she started showing courage, standing up for herself, and showing true inner strength, her Hiashi would be more pleased than upset? He's always calling her a failure and a disgrace, but if she was to use this motivation to better herself, she wouldn't be so weak, so fragile, and would not be a failure.

Of course you may not agree with me, however this is my fan fiction. You don't have to agree with me, you don't have to like it, but it's my story, and I can have it go like I want to.

On another note, I realize that some of you may think that my chapters are short, but this is my first fan fiction, and my first time writing in several years. As always any reviews, comments, tips, ideas, or flames are always welcome.


	3. The Mind Walk

_The Mind Walk_

It didn't take Inoichi long to arrive at the hospital room. Before opening the door, he remembered the Hokage's words '_Please allow Hinata Hyuuga to remain in the room'. I suppose she's probably still in there._ He then decided to knock gently three times on the door, before opening the door and walking in.

"Good afternoon, Yamanaka-san"was the greeting that he heard come from the usually shy girl who was sitting by the blond's side.

"Good afternoon to you as well, Hinata-san." Inoichi said with a smile. He could tell just from her greeting, that she was starting to gain confidence and come out of her shell. "I'm here to do my mind walk of Naruto, but I suppose you already knew that didn't you?" He then asked as she nodded, and begun to stand. "However, you're more than welcome to stay." This surprised the girl.

"You will allow me to stay while you preform a mind walk on Naruto-kun?"she asked, just to reconfirm what she had already heard. "Thank you very much, Yamanaka-san" She said as she bowed slightly, before sitting back down and taking Naruto's hand back in her own. _I sincerely hope that this works, not just for her sake, but for the whole village's too._ Was the last thought to cross Inoichi's mind, before he prepared himself to preform his mind walk.

Inoichi opened his eyes and took in his surroundings "This is Naruto's mindscape?" He questioned out loud, surprised at what he saw. To him it didn't look like any mindscape that he had ever been in before. Most mindscapes he had been in were a place that ninjas could come to be comfortable and find peace, however this mindscape looked like it reflected the years of abuse and suffering that Naruto had suffered.

Along the walls of the area were several different sized pipes. The walls looked broken down and beat up, on the ground was a thin layer of water. "A... sewer?" Inoichi said to himself, as he began to walk down the hall way, looking around for any trace of the blond. After a couple minutes of walking, he heard some ominous laughing. **"So, they finally sent in a Yamanaka, did they?"** boomed the loud voice. At hearing this, Inoichi froze for a quick moment. _So, that must have been the Kyuubi._ Inoichi then ran off, trying to find the Kyuubi. If he was unable to find Naruto then maybe, just maybe, the Kyuubi would be able to help him find who he was looking for.

"**How nice of you to finally come and see me, Yamanaka-san"** The nine tailed fox roared, as the blond mind walker approached the cage that imprisoned him. **_As much as I don't want to get help from the human, I need him to know the truth first._** The fox thought to himself, before Inoichi stopped walking, standing about five feet from the cage. "Kyuubi, Where is Naruto?" Inoichi said trying to be as civil as he could, although he was finding it hard considering he was standing in front of one of the most destructive and powerful Bijuu. **"Before we get to that human, How would you like to know the true reason why I attacked your village?"** The Kyuubi suggested. Inoichi's eyes went wide, before saying "Even if you do tell me the reason, how do I know I can trust you?"

The Kyuubi chucked at this response **"That's a valid question, I suppose I should start before the attack of the village. You may want to sit down for this." **As the Kyuubi said this, a chair materialized beside Inoichi, who promptly sat down. **"Now, I ask that you do not interrupt me as I begin to tell you this tale. When time for questions come, I will ask you for them, understood?"** The fox asked, and Inoichi nodded his head. **"Good, Now I suppose I don't need to give you my life story, so I'll start here. I knew Minato Namikaze and Kushina Uzumaki before that fateful day."**

"**Before the attack, I had already been jailed before. Kushina Uzumaki was my jailor. Minato had known of the fact that his wife, and mother to Naruto Uzumaki, was in fact a jinchurikki. I was not this big demon like most people had thought, but I suppose that's human nature. Fear the unknown, and extremely big things." **After saying this, the fox gave a quick chuckle **"I had met Minato in person a few times. He had developed a seal that allowed him to enter Kushina's mindscape, but only with her permission. If someone else got a hold of the seal and tried to use it, especially the Torture and Investigation department, it would not work. **

**He was such a bright young man. Always working hard, always having a smile on his face, always striving for the good of the village, and always trying to make his wife happy. Now, you are probably wondering if I was sealed inside of Kushina, how did I get out, and why would I attack the village, am I right?" **The Kyuubi finished, as Inoichi gave a quick nod, taking in everything that he has heard. **"Then I shall tell you. As was discovered by Minato, and also one other individual, The seal holding me imprisoned within Kushina was weakened, if only for a short time. This short time was while she was giving birth to my current host, Naruto. **

**Minato tried his best to make sure for my sake, her sake, and the sake of the village that the seal wouldn't deteriorate to the point where I would be released. Unfortunately one other individual had other intentions in mind. This other man and me have met in the past. The man was no other than Madara Uchiha, the man who unleashed me against the first Hokage." **Inoichi's eyes went wide, knowing what that could mean, but there was no way that the man could be alive still. The Kyuubi could tell that the blond wanted to ask. **"I do not know the details of how he managed to survive that long, but the truth remains. Just after Naruto was born Madara held the kit hostage, forcing Minato to leave his wife's side, to get Naruto back. Using this diversion, he managed to get to Kushina and unseal the demon from her using his Sharingan, and force me to attack the village. If I could have had my own way, I would never of attacked Konohagakure." **The Kyuubi finished, before looking down at the mind walker.

"I have one question for you, Kyuubi," Inoichi said, as he then continued "What's the reason that you would not have attacked the village?" The Kyuubi gave a hardy laugh at the question. Once the Kyuubi stopped laughing, he looked Inoichi directly in the face and told him. **"Because I had respect for the Fourth Hokage, Minato Namikaze. I had respect for Kushina Uzumaki. And I saw Naruto as a kit of my own litter. I was still a part of Kushina while he was being born remember, so the childbirth was something I was still there for. I experienced it, just as Kushina did that day. I'm now the only parental figure that Naruto has, and the village hates me and him for it regardless of where the fault lies for my attack."**

Inoichi did the one thing that he could, which was nod before saying "I believe you, Kyuubi. It seems you've had just as hard of a life as Naruto has himself. Now, could you tell me where I can find Naruto? There's a girl sitting at the side of his hospital bed desperately waiting for him to wake up."

"**Oho! So in his sleep he found himself a potential mate. Tell me Yamanaka-san, who is this female?" **"She is the eldest daughter of Hiashi Hyuuga, Hinata. She was always known as the shy meek one, up until Naruto came to the hospital." Inoichi informed the Kyuubi, before continuing "So, shall we wake the knucklehead up?" The Kyuubi merely nodded, and informed Inoichi where he could find Naruto.

_It's been almost an hour now, I hope he's okay_. Hinata thought, noticing that Inoichi hasn't returned from his mind walk yet. Just after she thought this, Inoichi returned to his body, a variety of emotions quickly crossing his face. One emotion that the girl noticed easily was one that she was surprised to see: Guilt. "Welcome back , Yamanaka-san." She greeted, as though she had not noticed the emotions. "I hope everything went well?"

"As well as they could given the circumstances, I suppose." The older blond replied solemnly. "These kind of mind walks are always straining on me. I guess this one may have been more straining, but that's just cause Naruto isn't normally this silent, or still." He added, before standing "I've done all I can do, the rest is up to his will from here. Please excuse me, I need to report to the Hokage now." Inoichi said as he started to walk out the door.

"Thank you for your help, Yamanaka-san. I appreciate it, and I'm sure that Naruto-kun appreciates it too." The heiress said with a smile, watching him walk out the door. Hinata turned her head and body, and faced Naruto, grabbing his left hand inside hers once more. "Please Naruto-kun, Find the will to keep living. I need to see your bright smile, your bright personality. The village needs you. You may have not been able to bring Sasuke home this time, but I promise you we will train extra hard and bring him home. As you say, that's a promise of a lifetime. And I don't plan on going back on this one."

Exactly twenty-three minutes after her speech to Naruto's lifeless body, Hinata noticed some movement from his body. First was a little twitch in his right hand, then a movement almost like he was tapping his right foot in annoyance, or even impatience. Then she saw the best movement she could have asked for, Naruto's right eye began to open slightly. "Naruto-kun?"

_**~-Author's Note-~**_

So, Naruto's coming out of his coma. Any guesses on what may happen in the next chapter? On another note, I realize that Kyuubi is supposedly this big ugly demon that only cares about destruction. But I think that even if Kyuubi was a big ugly demon, being sealed within hosts repeatedly would cause you to be a little less demonic. Especially when you were sealed into the mother of the current host during his birth.

I decided to put up two chapters at once. I've got three written, but I want to give you all a chance to guess what's up next. Once I get a few reviews, I'll post up the next chapter.

Any thoughts and/or suggestions on what could happen, or even possibly take a guess at what could be coming up? Leave a review. Who knows, maybe I'll incorporate a suggestion or two into the story.

As always any reviews, comments, tips, ideas, or flames are always welcome.


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